Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1887-12-23
ANGLOMANIA IN JAPAN.
A CYCllST FINDS TOXIC SMELLS
so ENGLISH, YOU KNOW"

american Legations Lack.
Last December when at Yokohama. the
fame of my bicycle tour around the world.
just then completed, attracted considerable
notice in Toxic. A japanese gentleman
named Suyelnatsu, occupying some high
Official position at the capital, sent me down
his card together with an invitation to come
up to swell ball that was coming Off on
Monday evening Expecting to see something
of a compromise between the Gelsha of
Japan and European dances, readily
accepted the invitation An hours ride
by rail and ten minutes by jiurikisha
through the level streets of Toxic brought me
to the Rokum Kwan, a swell European like
club house, where all the high toned hons of
Toxic take place. The Rokumi Kwan stood
in the middle of n large flower garden, a flood
OF light streamed through the windows and
the strains of European orchestra greeted
| the ear. The jiurikisha coolie halted beneath
the big portco and flunly in swallow
| tailed coat patent leather highlows and
white cotton gloves promptly advanced and
requested my card. There was nothing Jap
anese about this individual but his face and
shape. The delightful Difference and more
|
from beginning to end of my 500 mile ride
through Japan had been supplanted by the
formal stiffness of an English person" Plac-
ing my card and that of Mr.. Suyematsu ON
the proffered salver, l requested the imita-
| ton English footman to seek out the latter
| gentleman and hand him my card While
he departed on his errand loitered in the en-
trance. Several other hunliies, all in the
conventional swallow tails and snowy gloves,
stood around and specialized among them
| selves upon the fact that my boots were ONLY
plain impatient calf, and my black diagonal
! coat of other shape than theirs, and the
servants were SO startlingly English, YOU
know, that l was prepared at once for
sundry notifications in what had
been expecting to see at the ball
was scarcely pre- AIRED, however. for the ex-
| treme English lines of behavior and deport-
ment adopted by everybody present Mr..
Suyematsu, whom l had been picturing as
coming out to me, with the profuse polite
ness or his countrymen in general whom /
had met, turned up in the shape of a young
man about 25 The only difference in his ap-
| pearance from the flunkies was a button hole
bouquet and diamond studs. except that he
allowed his thick, black hair to fall a la
negige about his eyes.
"Er-aw, Mr.. Stevens, the err, err, bee-see-
cist~ Mr.. Suyematsu said in the finest
drawl ever heard outside of London "Er-
aw, cam APP Mr.. Suyematsu's manner quite
nonplused me for the moment. For the last
month had been knocking about among his
I countrymen and had found every one of them
profusely polite and deferential. Instead of
| bowling his head nearly to the floor. as had
expected, Mr. Suyematsu merely advanced
! languidly, as though it were rather of a bore
| TO have to come down these beastly stairs
| don't you know, and drawled out an in vita
ton to come up. didn't know under the cir
cumstances whether l had better accent his
invitation to "cam APP" or not. | pointed ont
| to him that / had on neither swallow tailed
coat, white gloves, nor pltent leather shoes
"Er-aw. nevah mind, er, cam ap," REPLIED
Mr.. Suyematsu. So, following his guidance.
we entered an ante chamber where a number
OF young and middle aged representatives of
New Japan" were Longing about smoking
| cigarettes. Mr.. Suyematsu introduced me- to
Count This, Viscount That and Mr.. So and So.
as "er-aw, Mr.. Stevens, the er- bee see -clist y
Many of these gentlemen could talk English
quite fluently; some of them had been edu-
Gated i'll America; some in England One or
| two OF them had been on diplomatic service
III Europe. All were as thoroughly English as
| MIR. Suyematsu himself. Some even SIR
| passed MI. Suyematsu in the perfection of
their drawl, and put him rather i'll the shade
| by regarding me through the medium of n
big round eyeglass. Some of the gentle
men towards the other end Of the room
contented themselves by adjusting their
| eyeglasses and surveying mo across the
length of the room. Every one of
these Toxic exquisites had mastered the art
OF appearing insufferably bored with things
in general, and only to be mildly awakened
hxya ho1l
were undoubtedly men of brains and energy
but they were now in society and their con
versation consisted of the merest common
place remarks. "Er-aw NJ. Stevens has been
found the-er-aw world" one would remark
"Y-a-a-s, er-aw, long Journey" would be the
drawing reply. Mr. Suyematsu got Off a
mild joke on Count B. The count. with
out deigninS TO remove his eye glass or smile
at the witticism, explained to me, "Er.be.
er-aw joked" Several army officers were
there in gay regimentals. These seemed less
dudish and more inclined for intelligent con-
versation, but they had not learned we'll their
part. They had not yet acquired proficiency
in concealing their brains and in appearing
indolently indifferent to things in general. al.
though some of them had mastered the drawl
and the eye glass to perfection.
But why do people initiate the Britisher at
e.i'' AA4' oSP' oiO POPuiollJ
regard America with more favor than any
other country. As they will initiate some
western state of society, why don't they affect
the purely Americana The reason is not
very far to seek. Through side door Mr..
Suyematsu led tho way into one end of the
ball room. Hero about 100 couples were
gracefully threading the measures of waltz
polka, square and round dances-al Euro
pean. Every japanese lady on the floor was
dressed in full ball room costume. Only one
or two onlookers at tho end of the room we're
in native costume, and they looked lonesome
and chagrined, as though painfully impressed
with @ sense Of being behind the times.
Every native gentleman present was arrayed
i'll tho conventional swallowtails. A dozen
or SO foreign ladies and gentlemen were pre-
SENT dancing among the gay throng, with no
distinction save their own personality. Some
of the foreign gentlemen were six feet tall or
hn To- Id